


The Gift in the Box

by Small_Hobbit



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-17
Updated: 2019-12-30
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:00:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 1,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21835600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Small_Hobbit/pseuds/Small_Hobbit
Summary: A box arrives for Sherlock, and the contents are, perhaps unsurprisingly, unexpected.
Comments: 14
Kudos: 19
Collections: Watson's Woes WAdvent 2019





	1. Chapter 1

“John,” Mrs Hudson shouted, “There’s a delivery for Sherlock. Could you come and get it, please. I’m not carrying it up two flights of stairs.”

“Coming!” John called.

He picked up the box which had been left at the bottom of the stairs. It wasn’t particularly heavy, but it was large, and he staggered back up with it. Once inside 221B John set the box down. He couldn’t tell from the label whether it was something Sherlock had ordered or if it was something someone had sent to him. So he left the box in the middle of the floor, where even Sherlock couldn’t ignore it, and returned to the article he was reading.

After about ten minutes John looked up, and the box seemed to have moved towards him. He shrugged his shoulders, assumed that he hadn’t in fact left it quite where he thought he had and continued reading. Five minutes after that he looked again. The box had definitely moved and now there were a few wisps of smoke coming out of it.

From long experience, John went into the kitchen to pick up the fire blanket before returning and tentatively starting to open the box. As he did so, he heard a distinct sigh from inside it, which was followed by definite movement. Before he could do anything, a small head popped up.

“What!” John exclaimed.

A corner of the box started to smoulder. Hastily, John smothered it with the fire blanket and then picked up the contents of the box, which he carefully carried into the bathroom and placed in the bath.

“Sorry, mate,” he said. “This is the safest place for you.”

He then sent a rapid text to Sherlock: _Someone has sent you a dragon. Have put it in the bath for safety._

Not long afterwards the reply came in: _Dragon was supposed to be dormant. Am on my way._

It wasn’t long before John heard Sherlock bounding up the stairs. He burst in and said, “Why did you wake it? You should have left the box unopened.”

“It was already awake, and the box was starting to smoke. What did you expect me to do?”

“Damn! It’s Mycroft’s Christmas present. I was looking forward to seeing his expression when he opened the box. I’m not sending it back, we’ll just have to look after it until Christmas.”

“I think Mrs Hudson will have something to say about you having a dragon on the premises.”

“We could say it was yours?”

“Don’t even think it.”

“I wonder whether Lestrade could be persuaded to give it a temporary home.”


	2. Chapter 2

John was still glaring at Sherlock when they heard footsteps on the stairs. As soon as the door opened both had already turned to face it, with entirely innocent expressions on their faces. Mrs Hudson glared at them.

“I have just received a message from Lady Sybil Ramkin,” she announced. “She sent it via clacks.”

Sherlock tried a half smile.

“So where is it?”

John shook his head, and Sherlock said, “Mrs Hudson, I’m sorry, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Mrs Hudson took a step forward and the two men took a step backwards in the direction of the bathroom. She took another step, which again they mirrored, in what John felt had the makings of a bad television comedy and, moreover, a waste of time. It was clear someone would soon give in.

“In the bath,” John admitted.

“Well, really.” Mrs Hudson walked into the bathroom. “Oh, you poor dear,” she said. She emerged from the bathroom with the dragon wrapped in John’s new dressing gown.

“But, Mrs Hudson,” John protested.

She ignored him and continued to address the dragon. “I shall take you downstairs and feed you some mince pies. Do you think you’d like that?”

The dragon hummed. There was no way to tell if it had understood the words, but it was clearly happy.

As soon as she had left 221B, John turned to Sherlock. “The dragon is wearing my dressing gown and is about to eat my mince pies. What are you going to do about it?”

“I still say we should ask Lestrade.”


	3. Chapter 3

The text Greg Lestrade received said: _Parcel for you to collect with Mrs Hudson_.

Greg texted back: _Will do. Have liquorice allsorts for John_.

When he went into Mrs Hudson’s flat, he saw the dragon sitting happily on a kitchen chair.

“Hello, beautiful,” he said. “Would you like a treat?”

The dragon looked hopeful. Presumably it didn’t understand the words, but clearly Greg was friendly.

Grog opened John’s bag of liquorice allsorts and gave one to the dragon. Mrs Hudson offered Greg a cup of coffee and, while they sat chatting, he fed the dragon the rest of the sweets.


	4. Chapter 4

The first surprise came when the dragon refused point blank to go in a box to travel to Sherlock’s parents’ home for Christmas. John suggested he rush out and buy a pet carrier, but Mrs Hudson had simply looked at him and said, “Don’t be ridiculous, dear. You wouldn’t want to be put in a box, so why should she?”

So, when Sherlock had collected the hire car Mycroft had booked for them, John settled into the passenger seat and the dragon sat on his lap, looking around at the scenery as they travelled. They had been forced to leave earlier than planned, since they needed to arrive before Mycroft, now Sherlock could no longer smuggle the dragon in without him seeing it.

The second surprise came when Sherlock’s mother hurried out of the house to greet them, as soon as they arrived.

“I received a message from Lady Sybil Ramkin by clacks – rather old-fashioned, but still extremely efficient – and she said you would be bringing a dragon,” she said.

“Yes, mother,” Sherlock replied. “It’s my present for Mycroft.”

“So she said.” She didn’t look entirely convinced. “I’ve made him, her …”

“The dragon’s female, apparently,” John said.

She nodded. “Her, a bed up in your room. Come this way.”

John got out of the car, holding the dragon. Sherlock picked up his overnight bag and began to follow them. His mother turned round.

“Sherlock, you’ll need to bring John’s bag as well,” she ordered.

The third surprise came when they entered the room Sherlock and John normally stayed in. It had two single beds, pushed together. And this time there was a camp bed made up as well. One of the single beds had clearly been prepared for the dragon, since the duvet had been formed into a nest.

“Surely the dragon can have the camp bed,” Sherlock said. His mother looked at him with the sort of expression used by mothers of all ages and nationalities. “Maybe not then,” he added.

“I’ll leave you three to sort yourselves out,” she said cheerfully.

Once she had gone, Sherlock said to John, “Clearly the camp bed’s yours, after all, you were in the army.”

John sat down on the camp bed, which creaked alarmingly, and hoped there would be no more surprises that Christmas.


	5. Chapter 5

John and Sherlock travelled back to Baker Street after Christmas in the same fashion as they had arrived at Sherlock’s parents’ home: with the dragon sitting on John’s lap.

***

On Christmas morning, Sherlock arrived at breakfast and said, “Mycroft, I’m giving you your present early.”

“But, Sherlock, dear,” Mrs Holmes said, “Presents are always taken from under the tree, following Christmas lunch.”

“Well, Mother,” Sherlock replied, “This particular present isn’t under the tree, so that tradition simply doesn’t apply. John, bring Mycroft’s present in!”

John entered the dining room, carrying the dragon.

“Give it to him, then,” Sherlock ordered.

John passed the dragon over to Mycroft, who looked, understandably, somewhat surprised.

He was even more surprised when the dragon uttered, in a voice which combined that of both Mrs Hudson and Mrs Holmes, “But I don’t wish to become part of the government, I wish to be a consulting detective.”

John swore, and received a look from Mrs Holmes which clearly said, ‘not in front of the dragon.’ So, he apologised to both his hostess and the dragon.

Sherlock glared at both Mycroft and the dragon. Mycroft picked up the dragon and gave her back to Sherlock, saying, “Here you are, brother dearest! Oh, and now you still owe me a Christmas present.”

The furious looks they gave each other were full of historic sibling arguments.

John was just wondering whether he should try to intervene, when Mr Holmes saved him by saying, “Now that’s all sorted, why don’t you come and have some breakfast, John? The scrambled egg is just cooked and there’s salmon as well.”

The dragon’s head swivelled round at the mention of the salmon, and John said, “This is mine, you can have Sherlock’s.”

The rest of the day passed about as well as John might have wished. The dragon got to eat some of the turkey, which wasn’t a problem because there was plenty, and both she and Mycroft were told off for eating too many mince pies.

***

They had stayed with Sherlock’s parents for Boxing Day, and then left the following morning. They travelled back in silence, which was finally broken by Sherlock saying, “What are you going to do with her?”

“She’s your dragon, not mine,” John said. “And really she’s very well behaved. It was entirely Mycroft’s fault she ate so many mince pies. We do need to decide where she sleeps though. And before you say anything, I am not giving up my room!”

“No,” said the dragon. “I shall have Sherlock’s room. He can either share with me or come up to you. And if he’s annoyed both of us sufficiently, he can sleep in the sitting room.”

John grinned. “Well, that’s told you, hasn’t it?”


End file.
